The Reason
by Michelangelo's Maggie
Summary: The bots are wondering why their partners are so protective of the youngest Burns... well there's a very good reason for that, but it brings up painful memories for the family.
1. Chapter 1

It had been a nice, calm day in Griffin Rock. Nothing, and no one needed rescuing, and it was giving the Burns family and their Cybertronian partners some much needed time off.

They were all currently in the bunker, that rested underneath the firehouse, enjoying the free time. Chief Charlie Burns and his three eldest children: Kade, Graham, and Dani, laughed and watched as the youngest of their family, Cody, tried to play tag with Blades.  
>Heatwave, Boulder, and Chase sat with the elder burns family members, and also smiled, as they watched the youngest of their team play with the young human.<p>

The small boy laughed loudly, as he ducked in between the bot's feet, avoiding his playful grab. "You can't catch me Blades!" Cody teased, as he once again avoided the bot's attempt to tag him.

"That's because I've been going easy on you!" The helicopter bot exclaimed, as he made a fast grab at the human. The boy once again avoided the attempt, but tripped over his own feet in all the excitement; sending him hard to the floor.

"Oww." The child muttered, just a little shaken from his fall. However, this didn't stop his sister from running to the boy's side.

"CODY!" Dani shouted, as she jogged over to her baby brother and helped him off the floor. "Are you okay?" She asked, concern evident in her voice.

"Yeah, I'm fine!" He replied enthusiastically, brushing himself off as he stood. "Let's go again!" He cried, looking up to Blades, who was kneeling beside the pair of humans.

"I don't think so squirt." Kade called out, as he and Graham walked over to their younger siblings. "It's time for bed."

"Awwww." Cody whined, slouching in disappointment.

"I know Cody." Graham said, as he began steering his little brother towards the elevator, that would take them to the residential part of the firehouse. "But you guys can always play again tomorrow."

"But *_yawn_* I'm not even tired." The boy protested, stopping to rub his eyes sleepily.

"Sure you're not." Kade replied, as he looked down at his brother with a caring gaze. The fireman smiled as he picked up the boy, who offered no protest, and walked into the elevator.

Dani and Graham walked back over to their father, and the other Rescue Bots; smirks on their faces, as they watched the elevator leave the bunker.

"Chief Burns, I have a question." Chase said sudddenly.

"Ask away." Charlie Burns replied to his partner.

"Why are you, Kade, Graham, and Dani so protective over young Cody?" The bot asked, catching the humans off guard. "I have seen the way that other humans treat their young, but you four seem to be cautious with him." He explained. "Like when he tripped earlier. Even though Dani was the only human to go to his aid, I felt all of your stress levels rise."

"I've noticed that too." Heatwave added.

"I've seen that as well." Boulder said.

"Me too." Blades added.

The Chief sighed, and closed his eyes. "It's because a few years ago, we got very close to loosing him."

"What!" Blades exclaimed, horrified at the thought.

"What happened?" Boulder asked gently, sensing that this was a hard topic for the family.

"It's a hard thing to talk about." Charlie replied, his voice thick with emotion.

"You do not have to tell us if you do not wish to." Chase quickly said, seeing the effect that this was having on his partner.

"No, no." Graham spoke up, taking his glasses off and wiping his eyes. "You guys would have learned about it sooner of later. It's just a painful thing to remember."

The Chief cleared his voice before he started speaking. "It was several years ago; Cody had just turned 5 years old..."

* * *

><p><strong><em>Flashback...<em>**

A young boy, with a head of messy blond hair, ran across the ground level of the firehouse as he was chased by his eldest sibling.

"Get back here you little squirt!" Kade called playfully to his baby brother, as the little rugrat ran around his firetruck.

"Can' ca'ch me!" The child exclaimed happily, running around the front fender of the truck as fast as his little legs would carry him. "I da Fwash!"

The fireman smiled as he ran a little faster, and scooped the child up into his arms. "Oh yeah!" He challenged, pulling up the boy's shirt, and blowing on his belly.

"Ahhhahahaha!" The child giggled as his brother continued to blow on his belly. " 'top! 'top!"

"You think you're so tough now that you're 5." The red head laughed, as he put the boy's shirt down and held him on his hip.

"Yeah!" The child cheered, puffing out his chest. "I tuff wike you!"

"Kade! Cody! Time for dinner!" The two looked up, and saw their brother Graham, standing in the elevator that would take them up to the living area of the firehouse.

"We're coming." Kade called, walking over to his younger brother.

"Wat's dinner?" Young Cody asked, looking at his brown haired brother expectantly.

"We're having broccoli, carrots, salad..." Graham began, as the elevator motors whirled to life.

"Eww!" The child exclaimed, sticking his tongue out.

"But I think Dad was making you a plain hotdog and maccaroni." The engineer added, smiling as Cody's eyes lit up at the sound of his favorite two foods.

Kade let the wriggling child down, as the elevator doors opened, and the smell of food wafted in. "Mmmm." The fireman commented, as he and his brother walked into the hall that lead to the kitchen. "Smells like roast beef."

"Yup." Graham smiled, as he watched their father pick up Cody as he ran into the kitchen.

Charlie Burns smiled at his youngest child, and walked over to the table; placing the squirming child into his booster seat, as his two eldest sons came in.

" 'otdog and macawoni!" Cody exclaimed, looking up to his father expectantly.

"Yes Cody." The Chief smiled, patting the young child's head. He turned around to grab the boy's dinner, but stopped when he saw his daughter standing there; a small plate in hand. "Thanks Dani." Charlie said, taking the plate from her, and setting it in front of his young son.

The family sat down to eat, but Dani noticed something off with her little brother. He would normally tear into his favorite meal, but he'd only taken a few bites to far.

"Hey buddy, what's wrong?" She cooed, earning her father's attention. "I thought you loved hotdogs and macaroni."

"Tummy hu'ts." Cody frowned, as he pushed the pieces of cooked meat around his plate.

The Chief immediately put his hand on the child's forehead, and frowned a little. "Hmm, a little warm." He muttered, feeling the boy's cheeks as well.  
>"Come on Cody, let's get you a bath and get you to bed." Charlie said, standing from his seat and picking up his youngest child. "You'll feel better tomorrow."<p>

* * *

><p><em>Later that night...<em>

Kade was heading back to bed, after getting a little midnight snack, when he heard whimpering coming form his baby brother's room.  
>He knew that the boy had been prone to nightmares, ever since their mom passed away two years ago.<p>

The red-headed fireman walked into his little sibling's room. He saw Cody, but the little boy was curled up into a ball, facing the opposite way from him.

Kade quickly closed the distance between him and his little brother, and knelt by his bed and whispered softly. "Hey squirt, what's wrong?" He managed to turn the boy over, and saw that he was holding his stomach area.

"Kade." Cody whimpered, tears now coursing down his little face. "My tummy hu'ts."

"Can you point where?" The fireman asked softly, a sinking feeling building in his gut. He watched, as Cody moved a shaking hand, and pointed to the lower right part of his belly; near his belly button.

"Oh no!" Kade breathed, laying a hand on the boy's head. "Don't worry Cody, you're going to be okay. DAD! DAD!"

Charlie Burns suddenly raced into the room, hair disheveled as he wore an old Police Academy t-shirt and boxers. The police Chief shook the sleep from his eyes, and then focused on his two sons. "What's wrong?" He demanded, as he knelt beside his youngest son with Kade.

"Dad, Cody didn't eat much, he had a low-grade fever, and he says that he has a lot of pain coming from his lower right side." The fireman explained, seeing the horrified look on his father's face.

"We have to get him to the hospital, now!" The Chief said flatly, trying to keep calm. Kade nodded, and gathered his brother into his arms as Charlie knocked on Graham and Dani's doors quickly.

"Graham, Dani, get up now!" He called in his business tone, as he quickly headed back to his room and grabbed a pair of shorts and slipped on a pair of flip flops.

"What is it dad?" Graham asked sleepily from his doorway, wondering what they were all doing up at this ungodly hour of the night if there wasn't an emergency. Dani emerged from her room, rubbing her eyes as well; when their dad came out of his room.

"We're taking Cody to the emergency room." He explained quickly. "Throw on some shoes, and get down to the squad car." The man turned back to his red-headed son and looked at the whimpering bundle in his arms.

"Don't worry Cody, everything's going to be ok." The Chief muttered hopefully, running a hand through the boy's fine blond hair before looking back as Graham and Dani quickly emerged from their rooms.

"Alright, lets go." Charlie called out, as they all rushed into the elevator.


	2. Chapter 2

_**Thank you, to everyone that has followed & reviewed this story!**_

_**And now, please enjoy this addition to 'The Reason'. Read and Review please :)**_

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><p>Kade, Graham, and Dani prayed for their baby brother as their father raced through the streets. Graham sat in the back with Kade, who held Cody securely in his arms. Dani sat in the front with her father, but was turned around, watching as the tears poured down her little brother's face.<p>

"Dad, Cody's going to be ok, right?" She asked fearfully, turning to her dad, and seeing how hard his jaw was set as he focused on the road.

"Don't worry Dani, he'll be ok." Charlie replied, looking briefly in his rear view mirror to check on his youngest.

Cody began to retch and gag. Kade turned the boy over, and watched as the child lost what little of his dinner he had eaten, on the floor mats of the squad car.

The red headed fireman allowed his baby brother to finish, before running his fingers through the boy's blond hair. "Don't worry Cody." He whispered to the shaking figure in his arms. "I've got ya, Kade's got ya."

* * *

><p>Cody cried out as his father stopped the patrol car if front of the emergency door to the hospital. Kade was out of the patrol car, and running to the doors of the hospital; before the others even had a chance to unbuckle their seat belts.<p>

The young boy in the fireman's arms whimpered in pain as he was jostled. Kade looked at his baby brother apologetically, but kept running through the automatic doors, and headed straight for the front desk.

"Please, you have to help him!" He exclaimed to the young woman sitting at the desk. The blond haired woman looked at him, and then to the child in his arms.

"What happened?" She asked, quickly taking out a clipboard and getting a pen from her scrub pocket.

"His name is Cody Burns. He's had a loss in appetite, low-grade fever, pain in his lower right side, and nausea." Kade explained professionally; knowing, after a few years of rescue work, what was on the forms. "We think it's an appendicitis."

"We?" The nurse asked skeptically, but then she saw Dani running in.

"Kade! How's Cody." The young helicopter pilot exclaimed, jogging over to her brother, and placing a hand on his shoulder. She looked at the small child in his arms sadly, and carded her fingers through his hair.

"Are you the parents?" The blond haired nurse asked seriously, as she looked up from her paperwork at the two.

"What!" The fireman exclaimed. "No! He's our little brother!"

"I'm sorry." The nurse offered, as she shoved the pen back into her pocket, and walked out from behind the desk. "Please follow me to the exam room."

Kade turned to Dani for a moment. "Go, I'll wait for dad and Graham." She said quickly. The red head nodded, before following the nurse through a pair of large double doors.

* * *

><p>The young fireman stopped, as the nurse stopped in front of one of the first berths. "Put him on the bed, I need to run a couple of tests first." The nurse explained professionally.<p>

Kade nodded and set Cody down on the bed. "I know you're in a lot of pain right now, but don't worry, you'll be ok." Kade whispered to his baby brother, patting the boy's head gently.

"Sweetie, I need to listen to your heart, and get your vitals okay." The nurse said gently, putting a hand on the shaking boy's shoulder as she fitted a stethoscope on her ears with the other.

Cody managed a small nod, but cried out as his pain worsened. The nurse quickly got the information she needed, and turned to leave. "I'm going to get Dr. Stvens. My name's Aubree" She said quickly, leaving the small berth.

The fireman felt helpless and useless, as he watched the boy cringe in pain. "Kade?!" The red head looked out of the little cubicle, and saw his father standing in the hallway, looking very stressed.

"Dad, over here." He called, earning the police chief's attention. "Where's Dani and Graham?"

"They had to stay back in the waiting room." The gray-haired man explained as he ran his fingers through Cody'd hair. "He's burning up, what have they done so far?"

"The nurse looked him over, and she just left to get the doctor." Kade explained, as his father ran a hand down his face and sighed.

Suddenly, a man with brown hair in his late 30's, dressed in a white coat stepped into view. "Are you the family of Cody Burns?" He asked, looking between the two men.

"Yes sir." Charlie spoke up. "What can you tell us."

"Well sir, your grandson is in bad shape." The doctor began. "By what your son described to my nurse, and what she found in her examination; I'm very positive that he had an appendicitis. We need to admit him to the hospital, and perform a CT scan to determine of it has ruptured of not."

"Okay, thank you Doctor." Charlie said, nodding to the man. "But Cody is my son." He added.

"I'm sorry, I just assumed." The doctor apologized as Aubree came into view, positioning a gunnery at the entrance of the small cubicle.

She then walked over to Cody, and gently set a hand on his shoulder. "Sweetie, I'm going to have to move you, so that we can take you upstairs and get a picture of your tummy." She said softly, explaining to the child what was going to happen, so he would be a little less frightened.

"O-okay." Cody whispered, bracing himself for the movement. He cried out when the nurse picked him up, and his brother and father had to just stand by and watch, as he was whisked away.

Soon, another nurse came into view. "If you will follow me, please." She said in a professional, detached tone. "You'll have to wait in the lobby, until we can finish the scan. We'll tell you of our findings as soon as we're done."

* * *

><p>Dani and Graham jumped up from their seat, as soon as they saw Kade and their dad come through the double doors. They rushed over, anxious to hear news about their baby brother.<p>

"What did the doctor say?" Dani exclaimed, as her brother and father sat down. Kade leaned back and ran a hand through his his red locks, while Charlie ran a hand over his face.

"The doctor said that is appeared to be an appendicitis, by all that he was seeing. They took him upstairs to have a CT scan, to see if it had ruptured or not." The Chief explained. "They'll tell us what they find when..."

"Mr. Burns?!"

The family looked up, to see the nurse that had escorted them our jogging towards them; a half-composed frantic look on her face.

"Please come with me, quickly." She said urgently.

"What, what's happened." Charlie asked worriedly, getting up and following the woman.

"This isn't the place for me to explain..." The nurse began

"He's our brother." Kade interjected forcefully. "We have a right to know too."

The grey-haired man looked over his older children, and then back to the nurse. "Might as well tell us all." He said.

The woman took a breath, and looked the red-headed fireman in the eyes. "They paged me from upstairs. The boy... his appendix ruptured. They have to take him to surgery immediately, to remove the infection before it gets into his bloodstream."

Dani fell into a chair, her hand covering her mouth as a tear rolled down her cheek.

"...What." Graham whispered, eyes wide as he stared at the nurse, placing a hand on his older brother's shoulder for support.

"I'm sorry, I truly am." The woman told them, seeing the reactions from the siblings. "But that little boy's life is in real danger. I wish that I could tell you that everything will be alright, but it may not be."

Kade turned his head to the side, and cried silently. _'You already took my mother.'_ He begged, to whatever God there was. _'Please don't take him too.'_


	3. Chapter 3

_**Thank you to all those that send me any type of condolence or PM offering to talk. Thank you soooo much, and you may never realize how much your kind words have helped me!**_

_**And now, as promised, this story will continue. **_

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><p>"WAIT!"<p>

Everyone present looked up at the orange and white flyer, his face plates twisted into a look of horror.

"Cody didn't die, did he?!... OW!" Blades cried out, as a certain red mech struck him across the back of his helm. "Heatwave, what was that for?"

"Have scraplets eaten into your processor?" The mech exclaimed, not waiting for an answer before he continued. "_Of course_ Cody didn't die! He's still here; Kade just took him upstairs."

"Who's callin' my name?"

All the bots, and humans looked towards the elevator, and saw the red-headed fireman strutting over; a confident smirk on his face. However, he suddenly stopped when he saw the sad look in his family's eyes.

"What'd I miss?" He asked seriously, as he walked over to his father.

"Nothing much." Chief Burns replied, his voice cracking as he wiped a hand across his eyes. "We were just telling the bots about the time that Cody had an appendicitis."

Kade immediately turned his head to the side, and brought the back of his hand up to his mouth. He coughed a little, before turning back to his family.

"Kade?" Heat wave said gently, kneeling and reaching a hand out to his partner.

"Why are you telling them about that." He asked, clenching his jaw; the confidence he held earlier completely gone, as he ignored the mech.

The grey-haired police chief put a hand on his sons' shoulder. "They're a part of this family too." He said gently. "They have a right to know."

"Why do they have a sudden interest in the past?" Kade blurted harshly, his eyes narrowing at the bots.

Everyone was a little taken back by the fireman's outburst. "Kade, you don't have to tell..." Dani began, but was quickly cut off by her brother's partner.

"No, Dani." Heatwave interjected. "We're sorry for digging into something that is obviously painful for all of you. You don't have to tell us any more if you don't want to."

The Burns family looked at each other in silence, having a silent conversation that filled the air with tension so thick that even the bots could feel its weight.

"Fine." Kade said aloud, wiping his hand across his face. "Where did you guys get to?"

Charlie Burns gazed at his son proudly, as a small smile graced his saddened features. "Up to the part where I left with the nurse."

The red-head took a deep breath. "The calm before the storm." He muttered.

* * *

><p>Kade jumped out of his seat and shouted out into the empty waiting room. "AHHHH! I feel so useless!"<p>

"Kade, there's noth..."

"Don't tell me that there's nothing we can do Graham!" The young fireman roared at his younger brother. "We're trained to help people and save lives, and we can't even save Cody's!"

The young engineer's jaw was slack, but he quickly shut it and stared wide-eyed at his oldest sibling; and for a moment, his emotions over ruled logic. He stood and grasped his brother's shoulders.  
>"We're trained to save people, yes." Graham exclaimed, his voice increasing in volume as he went. "But we aren't trained to operate on people!"<p>

Both Dani and Kade stared at their brother; the outburst so different from the normal, soft-spoken Graham that they knew.

"You think that you're the only one that feels useless!?" He continued, throwing his hands into the air. "At least you caught it! Dani and I were dead asleep; Cody might be dead already if it weren't for you!"

All of their eyes widened at the severity of the statement that had just come from the engineer's mouth.

Cody, their little innocent 5 year-old brother, who was being rushed into an emergency surgery as they stood there and fought. They would have woken up to a dead brother, had Kade not had the bad habit of midnight snacking.

Tears poured down Grahams face, as he stared at the carpeted floor, before collapsing onto his knees.

Kades mouth hung open as ha watched his brother begin to sob with heaving gasps. He quickly dropped to his knees and wrapped his arms around the shaking form.

"I'm sorry Graham." The fireman said softly, as he ran his fingers through the sandy-blond hair. "You're absolutly right, but Cody's gonna pull through." He chuckled a little and the smallest of smiles graced his lips. "He's a Burns, and we're too tough to go down like this."

"Mom wasn't." The engineer sobbed, as he grasped onto his older brother.

This struck a chord in all of them. They looked back and remembered their mother; she had died of cancer when Cody was only 3 years-old.  
>She did 6 months after she was diagnosed with stage 4 lung cancer.<p>

"But Cody will be." Kade whispered, holding his brother tighter.


	4. Chapter 4

_**Apologies for the wait, but college has to come before pleasure. **_

_**Please Read and Review!**_

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><p>Charlie burns was sitting outside of a pair of white double doors. His face buried in his hands, as he awaited the outcome of his youngest son; who was just inside those forbidding double doors.<p>

In all his years of parenting, even through the multiple trips to the emergency room with Kade; he was never this afraid of losing his child. Cody was so young, and so innocent, that it was killing the man to know that he couldn't protect his son from this pain.

"Mr. Burns?"

Charlie looked up, and saw a surgeon walk out of the doors. The man was still in his surgical garb, and moved his face mask, so that it rested on his neck.

The police chief cleared his throat and stood. "Yes." He managed, but he saw the look of pity on the other man's face.

"Sir, I know that this may be difficult." The man began, knitting his hands together as he paused for a moment. "But we may be facing the very real possibility of losing your son."

The greying police chief's hand flew to his mouth, and he turned his head to the side; those words playing over and over in his head.

_Cody was dying_

"Even if he makes it though this surgery, we'll be walking on eggshells to keep him with us." The man finished.

Silent tears streaked down his face, as he took a ragged breath and looked back at the surgeon that had come out of the operating room. "Thank you informing me." Charlie felt like he was squeezing out every word; that every syllable was taking what hope he had left, with it.

The man silently nodded, seeing the obvious pain that the other man was in, and walked back through the double doors.

* * *

><p>Kade, Graham, and Dani looked up as their father entered the room. They rushed over to him, missing the obvious signs of the news to come.<p>

"Dad, how's Cody?"

"Did the surgery go alright?"

"When can we take Cody home."

Charlie put his hand up, to silence his three children. "Sit down." He told them, keeping his voice as level as he could.

"Dad, what's going on?" Dani exclaimed, as she watched her father ease himself into a chair. He seemed to have aged 30 years since she saw him.

The police chief closed his eyes, and took a deep breath before looking up a the three expecting faces before him.  
>"I just spoke with one of the surgeons." He began, but his voice cracked, as he continued. "He told me th... that..." A hand flew to his mouth again, as he squeezed his eyes shut; trying to prevent himself from breaking down in front of his kids.<p>

A feeling, like molten iron, settled in Kade, Graham, and Dani's stomachs as they looked at their father; praying that he wasn't going to say what they were all thinking.

Kade spoke up first. "Dad... Is Cody dead?" He whispered, tears streaming down his face as he desperately looked at his father; silently pleading for him to tell him that he was wrong.

Charlie took a deep breath, and looked at his red-headed son. "No." He breathed, and watched their faces relax. "But the surgeon told me that we are facing the very real possibility of losing him tonight."

All three of the Burns children gasped, as they stared at their father.

"NO!" Dani exclaimed, jumping up and sprinting towards the operating room as her vision was blurred by her tears.

However, she didn't get far, when she felt strong arms wrap around her waist and pull her into a muscled chest. She turned her head, and caught a flash of red hair.

"Let me go Kade!" Dani shouted, as she tried to get free from his strong grasp.

"No Dani." Her eldest brother shouted back at her. "You know that you can't go back there!"

This only made Dani fight harder, her vision blurring more as she attempted to get out of his grasp. "Cody's dying." She screamed.

"We know!" He shouted as his sister beat on his chest, trying to get away from him. "But if you go back there, you'll only be in the way, and the surgeons won't be able to help him. Is that what you want?!"

Dani started sobbing, still beating her arms against Kade's chest. "Cody's dying." She muttered, as she ceases her fighting.

Kade shifted his grasp on his baby sister, and wrapped his arms around her shoulders; rocking her from side to side as they both fell to their knees. "We know, we know." He whispered, as Dani buried her face in his shoulder and let out gut-wrenching sobs.


End file.
